Thursday, August 11, 2016

The next invasion

Well, Thank Putin, the Russians have finally backed off.
But now it's the Arabs.
On Wednesday morning at precisely 6 a.m. Pacific Time, this blog had 90 visits from some unidentified peoples in Saudi Arabia, all at the same time. And they haven't been back.
I'm pretty sure they didn't visit because they're such big ELP fans and were dying to read my just-in stream-of-consciousness views on "Tarkus."
This on top of the hundreds of views from Russia a couple of weeks ago, and I'm starting to think I'm more popular overseas than I am in America. If only they were paying me.
What does it mean? What's it all about? What are they looking for?
And can I somehow make some money from this?
Did Donald Trump cause this? Do they think this is where Hillary Clinton's hidden e-mails are buried?
I don't get it. I sent Blogger an e-mail about this -- about the Russians, actually. So far, I've received no response. Maybe they're not concerned about it. Or maybe they're still investigating.
But as someone who recently had a fraudulent $35,000 loan application started on-line under my real name, I'm a little concerned.
What do they think they're gonna find here?
I'm sure it's not about me or my ravings.
Somehow in my head I see a room full of 90 little Arab teens (all boys, of course) in robes and turbans -- and somehow each of them has dunce caps on their heads -- sitting in front of a bank of computer screens. And at the front of the class, a very tall, skinny, bearded Arab man in robes and a turban is shouting (with a German accent, somehow): "We destroy The Great Satan now! One music blog at a time! Starting with TAD! Then we attack Crabby's!"
This might explain why Rastro's "La Historia de la Musica Rock" Tumblr site suddenly disappeared last week. Or why Groove Sandwich suddenly vanished a couple of years back. He claimed he was going to try to become a Serious Working Musician, but you never know. And if you're into conspiracy theories (which I have been lately), it isn't hard to see the dark, nefarious hand of ... well, who knows?
My girlfriend thinks this long-armed conspiracy also explains why a Best Of Chi Coltrane CD has been unconscionably delayed in arriving from Somewhere In Europe, while Amazon keeps telling us not to worry, that the CD isn't "officially" Overdue until the middle of next month.
This on top of the fiendish U.S. Postal Service shutting off the mail here for No Known Reason, just so some petty bureaucrat can exercise her limited amount of power....
You can see how this stuff piles up.
Of course, Crabby's still cranking out the posts -- a long one on the Beach Boys' classic PET SOUNDS earlier this week. I think Crabby'll still be doing this stuff after the rest of us are long gone. SOMEBODY has to. And Crabby's had to deal with the Russians before. Several times. And he doesn't know what it all means, either.
I think it is well past time for someone -- a weak link in the Arab or Russian cabals -- to Confess All. But I ain't holdin' my breath.
I think Donald Trump is somehow to blame for all this. I'll figure out HOW later. And if it's not him, it's GOT to be Hillary. Right?

1 comment:

Basically no life and no girlfriend and a perverse fascination to keep the local music scene alive and finding junky pop 45s keeps the Record World blog humming along but I'm sure some day it will come to an end. As for Groove Sandwich, Jeff has been idle even at his music site. Basically you have to be either dedicated or a fool to keep things rolling along as I have. I wouldn't say Rastro has breathed his last, nor 2000 Man, they're just waiting for the right moment to come back.

As for Chi Coltrane, too bad Go Like Elijah never got to be the top ten hit Thunder And Lightning was ;)

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BEFORE I GET OLD: THE STORY OF THE WHO -- Dave Marsh

BILLBOARD'S TOP POP SINGLES -- Joel Whitburn

CHRISTGAU'S CONSUMER GUIDE: THE '80s -- Robert Christgau

CHRISTGAU'S RECORD GUIDE: THE '70s -- Robert Christgau

ENGLAND'S DREAMING -- Jon Savage

IN THE COURT OF KING CRIMSON -- Sid Smith

King Crimson diary & scrapbooks -- compiled by Robert Fripp

LOOK! LISTEN! VIBRATE! SMILE! -- compiled by Dominic Priore

MAINLINES, BLOOD FEASTS AND BAD TASTE -- Lester Bangs

PSYCHOTIC REACTIONS AND CARBURETOR DUNG -- Lester Bangs

REVOLUTION IN THE HEAD -- Ian McDonald

ROLLING STONE MAGAZINE: THE UNCENSORED HISTORY -- Robert Draper

SAUCERFUL OF SECRETS -- Nicholas Schaffner

THE ALL MUSIC GUIDE TO ROCK

THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY -- Bill Bruford

THE BEACH BOYS -- Byron Preiss

THE BEACH BOYS AND THE CALIFORNIA MYTH -- David Leaf

THE HEART OF ROCK AND SOUL -- Dave Marsh

THE LONGEST COCKTAIL PARTY -- Richard DiLello

THE PENGUIN GUIDE TO JAZZ -- Richard Cook and Brian Morton

THE PENGUIN GUIDE TO POPULAR MUSIC -- edited by Donald Clarke

THE ROLLING STONE RECORD GUIDE -- edited by Dave Marsh & John Swenson

THE ROLLING STONE RECORD REVIEW VOLUME II

WALK AWAY RENE -- Hipgnosis/Storm Thorgerson

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"Back on the Chain Gang"

"If We Were Wise"

2 months on Match.com!

2 years in Turkey!

A look back at SMiLE

A really rude habit....

All SMiLEs

Boycott Black Friday!

Confessions of an Amazon.com addict

Dating After 50, Parts 1&2

Facing Dr. Pagan

First Girl I Loved

Guaranteed Great Music!

Musicmagic

My old Idaho home....

The best prog band ever?

The Boogie Monster and other adventures

The Good Olde Days...?

The Kids Are Alright....

The poster-child for stressing-out

The pot-smoker's runaround

The Singles Maven

The smallest Air Force base in the world

The Walkman at tech school

The worst Prom date EVER

Where are the laffs?

Wine, Women & Songs

TAD's fave rock&roll novels

Bruce Sterling: ZEITGEIST

Gael Baudino: GOSSAMER AXE

George R.R. Martin: THE ARMAGEDDON RAG

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Lewis Shiner: SAY GOODBYE

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Roddy Doyle: THE COMMITMENTS

Tony Parsons: STORIES WE COULD TELL

Good Rock&Roll Short Stories

Alistair Reynolds: "At Budokan"

Edward Bryant: "Stone"

Gardner Dozois, Jack Dann and Michael Swanwick: "Touring"

Graham Masterton: "Voodoo Child"

Gregory Benford: "Doing Lennon"

Gregory Nicoll: "Dead Air"

John M. Ford: "Preflash"

Lewis Shiner: "Jeff Beck"

Lucius Shepard: "A Little Night Music"

Michael Swanwick: "The Feast of Saint Janis"

Norman Spinrad: "The Big Flash"

Robert Silverberg: "All the Way Up, All the Way Down"

William Gibson: "The Winter Market"

Favorite Novels Ever

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Frederik Pohl: GATEWAY

Gael Baudino: GOSSAMER AXE

George R.R. Martin: DYING OF THE LIGHT

John Brunner: STAND ON ZANZIBAR

Kathe Koja: SKIN

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Ray Bradbury: THE MARTIAN CHRONICLES

Robert A. Heinlein: THE MOON IS A HARSH MISTRESS

Robert Silverberg: DOWNWARD TO THE EARTH

Robert Silverberg: DYING INSIDE

Robert Silverberg: THE BOOK OF SKULLS

Samuel R. Delany: EMPIRE STAR

Samuel R. Delany: THE EINSTEIN INTERSECTION

Favorite Albums of All Time (this week....)

Bangles: DIFFERENT LIGHT

Beach Boys: PET SOUNDS

Beach Boys: SMiLE SESSIONS

Beatles: ABBEY ROAD

Caravan: FOR GIRLS WHO GROW PLUMP IN THE NIGHT

Go-Go's: TALK SHOW

Group 87: (1ST)

Gryphon: RED QUEEN TO GRYPHON THREE

Gryphon: TREASON

Happy the Man: CRAFTY HANDS

Illusion: OUT OF THE MIST

King Crimson: THE GREAT DECEIVER/LIVE 1973-1974

King Crimson: THE YOUNG PERSON'S GUIDE TO...

Moody Blues: THE PRESENT

Nick Drake: BRYTER LAYTER

Pretenders: (1ST)

Providence: EVER SENSE THE DAWN

Renaissance: LIVE AT CARNEGIE HALL

Sky: SKY2

The Who: WHO'S NEXT

Yes: YESSONGS

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About this Blog....

This blog is a chance for me to rave about Strange Music, off-the-wall (usually music-related) books, current events, or whatever works me up enough to write about. This stuff is compulsive for me, so you never know what might appear here. Or what might send me into another of my ongoing Nostalgia Trips....

Bio stuff....

58. Former newspaper reporter & editor (20 years), frustrated fiction writer. 3 years of work in a record store -- a lifetime of listening. Been reviewing music, books & movies for newspapers since 1987. 2 children, both grown up. Spent last 13 years working in a convenience store/gas station in western Washington, USA.